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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27515278">Free Reign</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/MerlinWinchestr/pseuds/MerlinWinchestr'>MerlinWinchestr</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Julie and The Phantoms (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Mentions of Caleb, mentions of Alex</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 02:33:57</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,175</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27515278</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/MerlinWinchestr/pseuds/MerlinWinchestr</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Being dead was just like being alive, but with a few added perks. Ever since Caleb had found him and offered him the opportunity of a lifetime—well, after-lifetime—Willie always had somewhere to rest, he always had people to talk too, and he could eat whatever he wanted. Plus Caleb gave him free reign to skate the streets of Hollywood as much as he’d like. </p>
<p>Sure it had cost him his soul, but he was a ghost; what need did he have for a soul?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Free Reign</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p><strong>Rating:</strong> K+<br/><strong>Warnings:</strong> None<br/><strong>Category:</strong> Gen<br/><strong>Characters:</strong> Willie (mentions of Caleb and Alex)<br/><strong>Setting:</strong> Pre-Stand Tall</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <h1>Free Reign</h1>
<p>Being dead was just like being alive, but with a few added perks. Ever since Caleb had found him and offered him the opportunity of a lifetime—well, after-lifetime—Willie always had somewhere to rest, he always had people to talk too, and he could eat whatever he wanted. Plus Caleb gave him free reign to skate the streets of Hollywood as much as he’d like. </p>
<p>Sure it had cost him his soul, but he was a ghost; what need did he have for a soul? And, ok, fine, maybe having to check in with an adult every time he wanted to leave the club was exactly the afterlife he had had in mind. And maybe Caleb did give him the creeps and made him incredibly nervous at times. And, fine, so he really didn’t like having to be Caleb’s eyes and ears for new ghosts—not after Yvonne, at least—but it was worth it. Right?</p>
<p>That’s what he told himself at least. But his stomach twisted every time Caleb called him into his office for a report It was useless to lie; even if he could lie—and he couldn’t, thanks to the whole soul-owning thing—his fear of Caleb and what he was capable of wouldn’t let him lie even if he could. He’d tried once, when he first arrived, and the pain from Caleb’s stamp was something he would never wish even on his worst enemy. </p>
<p>Not that he had any enemies. Willie liked people, and he liked to believe that they liked him as well. True he could really only interact with the other ghosts at Caleb’s club and, sure, they were all older than him in both lifer and death years and had a tendency to speak to him like he was a child, but they didn’t hate him. And there were several lifers, regulars at the club, who had even invited him to hang out at their homes, despite the fact that they couldn’t see or hear him. It never seemed to bother them though, and they had a ton of cool cars that they let him drive, so he was cool with it. </p>
<p>He spent most of his free time just skating the streets of Hollywood, though. The further away from the club, the better, though he tried not to dwell on that thought. When he first died, he stuck around the skate parks and watched over his friends the best he could. But as they years went by, his friends moved on and soon the skate parks were full of nothing but memories. He didn’t blame his friends for moving on; they still had lives to live and not everyone could do nothing but skate all the time. Eventually everyone had to grow up. Except him. </p>
<p>He still went by the skate parks occasionally, but it just wasn’t the same anymore. Besides, skating the streets and places off-limits was way better anyhow. Seriously, who else could say that they had skated Justin Bieber’s pool or the roof of the Orpheum? Plus passing right through lifers and watching them shiver was always a blast. Sometimes it was even enough to make him forget that their were even such things as other ghosts.</p>
<p>Which is what led him to crashing right into Alex. And if his first thought was how the other ghost’s pink sweatshirt really brought out his eyes, well, he was only human. And if he couldn’t help but stare into those eyes and smiles, then at least Alex didn’t seem to notice. Or maybe he did? Alex started back just as much, and he didn’t move away when Willie sat a little closer then he normally would. </p>
<p>He was grateful Caleb was away so he didn’t have to report to his office that night. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk about Alex—Lord knows all he wanted to do was talk about Alex—but he couldn’t shake the feeling that telling Caleb would somehow be wrong. His mind conjured a picture of Yvonne, but Alex was nothing like Yvonne. She had directly challenged Caleb, had tried to take his power for her own. Caleb had had no choice in dealing with her. Alex wasn’t like that; he posed no threat. </p>
<p>So when Caleb returned and asked for a report, Willie was honest. He told Caleb about Alex and his band-mates and the girl who could make them visible. He told him about the museum date—date? Was it a date? No, he shouldn’t call it a date—and how Alex and the others posed no threat and that they were just like him, they were just unfortunate kid doing their best in this new afterlife of theirs. Caleb had listened, then smiled, before dismissing him and a weight he hadn’t realized he was carrying lifted from Willie’s shoulders.</p>
<p>And then Alex asked him to make them visible and he had to tell him he couldn’t. That should have been the end of it. He should have just said he was sorry and skated away. But he didn’t. How could he when Alex looked so defeated and hurt, and it was all because of him? He took one look at the pain on Alex’s face and knew he would do whatever he could to make the other boy smile. Even if meant inviting him into the lion’s den. </p>
<p>He should have known better! He knew what Caleb was capable of! But he had foolishly let him believe that the man would leave them be. Stupid! Of course Caleb would do whatever he had to in order to get the guys to sell their souls; he couldn’t risk anyone holding more power then him. Willie knew that, but he still brought them right into Caleb’s hands, and that was something he would never be able to forgive himself for. </p>
<p>To make matters worse, he was a coward who couldn’t bring himself to watch Alex in pain knowing that it was all his fault. So he withdrew, he watched from a distance, and he was almost grateful when Caleb put him on a tighter rein because at least it meant he didn’t have to watch Alex slowly fade away. </p>
<p>Except Alex wouldn’t let him just skate away. And every time Alex spoke, Willie felt himself fall more and more. Because Alex wasn’t like the other ghosts at Caleb’s club. Alex wasn’t like any of the friends he had had when he was alive either. Alex was special and, God help him, he cared about Alex more then he cared about himself or anyone else. It was his fault that Alex was in this mess, and he would do whatever he could to get him out of it. Even if it meant losing him forever. </p>
<p>But even if Alex crossed over and Caleb destroyed him, well, at least he had gotten to have someone like Alex in his life, even if only for a little while. In the end, that alone made it all worthwhile.</p>
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